VMS Ventures Commences Drill Program on its 100% Owned Cowan River Project Near Snow Lake, Manitoba

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VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire -02/22/12)- VMS Ventures Inc. (TSX-V: VMS.V - News) ("VMS") is pleased to announce that drilling is about to commence on its 100% owned projects near Snow Lake. The projects selected for drilling this year are Cowan River, Morton Lake, Puella Bay and McClarty. Westcore Drilling of Salmo, B.C., has been awarded the contract.

The first drill program, which starts later this week, will be on the Cowan River project. It will test surface time-domain electromagnetic (TDEM) anomalies from our recently completed survey and a new target at the already defined Cowan River zone. The TDEM survey outlined two conductive bodies associated with VTEM anomalies on the southern portion of the grid. Two diamond drill holes are planned to test these targets.

One drill hole is planned for the Cowan River zone, testing a bore hole (BHPEM) anomaly below the high grade copper discovery made in 2011 featuring 9.81% copper over 1.37 m within 6.59 m of 2.25% copper in hole RE-11-001 (see news release dated April 13, 2011). The intersection is in similar formations to those that host the Reed Copper deposit and the Reed North zone, located approx. 8 km to the west. All three Cowan River targets occur in a favourable volcanic sequence between the Reed Copper deposit and the past producing Spruce Point Cu-Zn deposit.

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Neil Richardson, VMS's Chief Operating Officer, states: "We continue to evaluate our targets using an integrated approach. Each exploration program provides us more encouraging information. The recent results from our TDEM survey at Cowan have delineated some interesting deeper conductive bodies and the bole hole anomaly beneath the high grade discovery at Cowan is clearly a priority target for us."

The Puella Bay, Morton and McClarty projects will focus on drill testing Versatile Time-domain Electromagnetic (VTEM) airborne anomalies and each will be conducted later in the spring. These anomalies were selected based on their geophysical conductivity, coincident magnetic features and geological prospectivity. VMS has integrated historical data, geochemistry, geology and geophysical databases into the target selection process.

Due to unseasonal warm weather this winter, drill locations will be determined as ground conditions permit.

For additional details on VMS Ventures' Snow Lake properties, visit the company website at www.vmsventures.com.

Qualified Person

All technical information in this release has been reviewed by Dr. Mark Fedikow, P.Geo, who is the Qualified Person for the Company and Vice President of Exploration and Technical Services, VMS Ventures Inc.

About VMS Ventures Inc.

VMS Ventures Inc. is focused primarily on acquiring, exploring and developing copper-zinc-gold-silver massive sulphide deposits in the Flin Flon-Snow Lake VMS Belt of Manitoba. The Company's VMS project property portfolio consists of the Reed Copper Project, McClarty Lake Project, Sails Lake Project, Puella Bay Project and Morton Lake Project. Outside of the Snow Lake camp, the Company holds massive sulphide prospective properties near the past producing Fox Lake and Ruttan copper-zinc mines, near the communities of Lynn Lake and Leaf Rapids in northern Manitoba. These properties are located in the mining friendly province of Manitoba, Canada. The Company also has optioned three properties in the Sudbury mining camp. They are Terra Incognita, Golden Pine and Black Creek.

VMS Ventures owns approximately 45% of North American Nickel Inc. (TSX-V: NAN.V - News). For more information on North American Nickel Inc., please visit www.northamericannickel.com.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

John Roozendaal, President

VMS Ventures Inc.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.